Knight of the Empress (4 page)

"Can we avoid it?"

"No, for it has a good view of the smaller roads too.  It is why a watcher would choose it."

"Then this is deliberate."

"I would think so."

"Dick, how many men are there?"

"Altogether I would say twenty. From their standards and their shields then I would say eight knights."

They all looked to me. I was now the leader. "We have three knights and two squires.  They have more knights than we do. They will be charging downhill and their horses will give them an advantage."

The Empress looked worried, "Perhaps we can talk with them."

I shook my head. "We are close to Nancy and these knights are waiting.  If we had the Germans here we could question them.  I am certain that they would have known of this." They looked at me still. "Arm for war.  Use the war horses and break out the lances.  Dick I want you to ride back to Grant and the others.  When they charge us I want you to use your arrows on their flanks. It may be our only advantage."

"Yes, my lord."

There were only eight archers with me but they were good. As we changed horses and gathered our lances I sought out Edgar. "I am leaving you to watch over the Empress.  I will also leave the Germans.  They are sound fellows, I think.  You have a few words of their language do you not?"

"Aye sir and I will watch her like she was my own."

"I know you will. I want you close enough to see if it goes ill with us.  If it does then ride back to the Count."

The Empress shook her head, "Do not think that way."

"We have to be prepared for the worst, my lady. There are three of us with experience and we do not know the mettle of these enemies yet. I hope to be successful but we cannot guarantee anything in this life. Would you tell the Germans that I leave Edgar in command?"

While she went I summoned Brian. He was the youngest of my men at arms and the least experienced.  "I leave the horses to you Brian.  If you have to flee then you may have to let them go."

"My lord I cannot do that."

I put steel in my voice, "It if is a choice between the horses or the Empress then there is no choice. Save the Empress." I saw that we were ready and Empress Matilda nodded. "We will attack, if it comes to that, in an arrow formation.  I will ride in the centre, Edward to my right and Guy to my left.  Harold and Alan tuck in behind me. The men at arms will be in two lines.  Until we see them we will ride in a column.  Do you all understand?"

They all shouted, "Aye, my lord!" And we rode to war.

This would be the first time I had led my own men against a superior enemy using lances.  I just hoped I was good enough.  The lances we used were well made with an eight feet long ash haft and a well made iron head.  Alf had done a good job manufacturing them. I was confident that we had good shields but I worried about Alan and Harold.  Both of them had yet to be trained with a long spear.  This was no place to learn.

We passed my archers in the woods.  As soon as they saw us pass they disappeared.  I could rely on them.  As soon as we emerged from the gloom of the forest I saw the conroi on the hill.  They were half a mile away. All of them had the long shield which had been used at Hastings and the conical helmet.  That gave me hope.  Perhaps their mail was not as good as ours.  They had their horses in a line.  I saw that the leader had a quarter design on his shield and that the top right hand quadrant had a yellow sun with a white flower in the middle. Guy said.  "These are from Flanders.  Their leader is Guillaume of Ghent the illegitimate half brother of Count Charles."

We had halted to watch their intentions. "And the others?"

"Most look to be from Flanders but the knight on the end has a plain red shield and I know not him. He may be a mercenary come to try to gain fame and fortune.  There are many like him in the borderlands."

I saw their lances lowered as they began to trot down the hill. There had been no chance to talk. It could be they wanted us for ransom and the presence of the Empress was an accident but I did not believe that.  The Count of Flanders had been ever present since we had landed in Normandy.  I would have to discover why later but first we had to battle them.

"Stay tight together.  Do not worry about their speed.  We stay as one."

I turned Star and headed towards them.  They were now cantering down the slope and I spied hope for the first time. They were no longer knee to knee.  We started to trot and I resisted the temptation to glance behind me.  It would not give my men any confidence.  I had to make them believe that we could win and that I was confident.  I was not.  I watched the charging knights lean forward and pull back their lances. I spurred Star to make him go ahead of the other two so that our line would become the arrow. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the spears of Harold and Alan.  They were riding as close to me as they dared.  The slope meant we could not go very fast but it increased the speed of the eight knights who were now galloping full tilt towards us. As they did so they lost the valuable cohesion they needed for an effective charge.

I suddenly spied a gap big enough for Star emerge between Guillaume of Ghent and the knight next to him.  We were just thirty paces apart and I yelled, "Charge!" I put my spurs to Star. He leapt forward and I pulled back my right arm. I had my shield as tight to my left side as I could get it. I knew that this knight would aim for my head and expect me to do the same.  I readied my arm and at the right moment I punched forward.  As I had expected his shield was held high and the head of my lance slid over the cantle of the saddle and tore into the mail and gambeson.  His lance head clattered into my shield and slid up to my helmet.  The angled cap took the blade away. The force of my blow and the weight of the knight and horse broke my lance and I threw the useless haft away.

As I drew my sword I saw the mortally wounded knight slipping backwards and holding on to the lance which had struck his vital organs. Our formation had taken them by surprise.  Half of their knights had not had to face an enemy for my men at arms, like their own were some thirty paces behind. I saw that the men at arms had lances and I risked a glance over my shoulder.  We had felled three knights and, as far as I could see lost none.

"
Mêlée
!"

Even Harold and Alan knew what to do.  It was every man for himself and you tried to do as much damage as you could to those around you.  The men at arms coming towards us were not in a single line and their speed meant that it would be possible to avoid their lances if you were agile enough. The first Sergeant at Arms who tried to kill me also made the mistake of hitting my head but he forgot to punch and the blow was weak. I jabbed at him with my shield and slashed down with my sword at the same time.  The combination made him fall from his mount and I was through their line.  As I turned to attack their rear I saw two men at arms with arrows sticking from them. My archers were doing what they did the best. The men at arms did not have full mail and the arrows were deadly

I ignored the men at arms and rode for the knight who was fighting with Harold.  Both their lances had broken but the knight was having the better of it. Now I had the slope and Star galloped hard. This was what he had been bred for, fighting. I came behind the knight and brought my sword above his cantle and across his back.  The heavy sword, the force of Star and the slope shattered his spine and almost tore him in two.  His lifeless body fell to the ground. I know not if it was the archers or my sudden attack from behind but the others took flight and headed back up the hill, running the gauntlet of Dick and his archers.

I could see that we had taken casualties. Alan was lying on the ground and did not appear to be moving.  Two of Guy's men at arms were also down while Padraig and Geoffrey were not on their horses. I heard Edward shout, "Secure the horses."

I rode to Alan.  Harold had lifted his helmet.  I could see a huge dent in the side.  His shield also showed where a lance had scored a mark along it. He grinned at me. "Well sir, that was lucky!"

I dismounted and handed him my reins.  "Aye but Alan was not so lucky." His face fell.  The two were good friends. I waved my arm and Brian led the Empress and the Germans towards us. I rolled Alan over.  His left arm looked to have been damaged for it lay at an awkward angle.  More seriously I saw that the mail covering his stomach had been scored and he was bleeding. "Wulfric!"

Wulfric was our healer.  A huge man he could be incredibly gentle when he needed to be. He dismounted and handed his reins to Roger. He smiled. "Looks worse than is it is.  If it was a serious one he would be gushing blood.  I'll get his shirt off and have a look."

I nodded and joined Edward with the prone Padraig. I rolled him over and saw that he was dead.  The head of the lance was still embedded in his chest.  I had lost one of my men and I felt sick. There was some relief when I saw Geoffrey stagger to his feet.

Guy joined us. "That could have been worse.  We beat them!" He sounded almost happy.

"I have lost one man and another is wounded."

He pointed up the hill, "And two of my men lie dead.  It happens.  It is war." He put his arm around my shoulder, "Your plan worked Baron.  I never would have believed that three knights and two squires could clear the field of eight knights but we did! This was a great victory. Come we will see what we have."

The three knights were all dead.  Guillaume of Ghent had died almost immediately.  One of the others had fallen and broken his neck whilst the last had been speared by Guy.  An impressive blow, he had sunk his lance into his neck. The mail of two of them was usable but my spear had rendered Guillaume's useless.  We took their swords, their horses and their shields.  Each also had gold about them and they bore the face of Charles of Flanders.

The Empress Matilda joined us.  She looked pale when she saw the three bodies of our men. "They died for me!"

Guy shrugged, "Empress, I said to the baron here that this was a great victory.  Three knights have fallen." He pointed up the hill.  "And there are five dead men at arms."

Edward nodded, "He is right my lord. Come let us head east.  I am keen to reach safety.  I would not wish to push our luck."

"What about Alan.  He has been wounded.  It looks like a broken arm and he has a wounded side."

Wulfric looked up. "He'll be all right my lord.  I will stitch him up.  Roger, get some of that aqua vita." I saw that Alan's eyes were open and he was smiling although he was very pale. "Now then, my son, this will hurt but you fought well today and will have a nice scar to impress the women with." He suddenly realised that the Empress was still standing there, "Begging your pardon ma'am."

She laughed, "Do not worry about my sensibilities.  Care for him."

Wulfric poured some of the spirit we had bought on the road over the wound. I saw Alan wince but he did not cry out.  He took a long draught of it and then, closing his eyes nodded. Wulfric took out a bone needle and some cat gut from his leather pouch.  He soaked both in the spirit and, after taking a drink himself, he began to sew.  It was a huge needle.  The physicians in Constantinople had much finer, delicate instruments.  I wished we had brought some with us.  I could see this happening regularly.

While he was being sewn we buried our dead. I said a few quiet words over Padraig's grave; I was just pleased that all of my men were single.  None had left families behind. Harold and Wulfric helped Alan to his horse and Harold agreed to watch his friend.  We now had three more warhorses.  Guy would take two back with him but we now had a spare. That was the harsh reality of life in a conroi. Men's lives were balanced against the profit that we made. It was sad really.

Nancy had a fine castle and the Empress was loudly welcomed by the burghers of the town. Although we were not recognised she was. I was impressed that her first thoughts were for the four Swabian knights she had left there. As soon as the castellan greeted us she asked after them. We all breathed a sigh of relief when we discovered that there were Swabian knights in a small inn in the centre of the walled town. I left Guy and Edward to arrange our lodgings and Harold and I escorted the Empress to the inn. We heard the clash of arms from the enclosed courtyard.  As no one was hurrying to see what the problem was then we kept our weapons sheathed. There were three knights in their gambesons and two were practising with their swords.

As soon as the Empress entered they dropped to their knees.  "Empress Matilda! You are safe.  We waited here for you as we were not certain of your route home."

"Rise Rolf, Carl, Gottfried," she looked around, "where is Gurt?"

The eldest of the three shook his head. "He died of the poison.  We have only been up for two days.  Carl here was close to death." He glanced at me suspiciously.

"This is Baron Alfraed of Norton and he and his men were charged with escorting me from Caen."

The three of them came closer. "And the Teutonic knights?"

The Empress glanced at me, "I suspected that they were plotting against my life and Alfraed here was suspicious too.  He stopped them before they could do us more harm.  They are in Lorraine with the Count of Bar."

Rolf suddenly looked angry.  "Then when we have returned you to Worms we will visit Bar and end the lives of these treacherous murderers." He paused, "We discovered it was they who paid for our food to be poisoned. They owe us a life!" He put his hand out to me and smiled for the first time. "I am sorry I was suspicious of you, friend. You have saved the life of the Empress. They had an ambush planned but we could not find out where."

I pointed west.  "Eight knights and their men at arms ambushed us. We escaped."

"I am pleased that you had many knights to protect you, Empress."

She shook her head, "No, Rolf, we had but three knights and two squires."

He laughed and put his arm around my shoulders.  "You look like a strong wind would blow you over but you have a warrior within you Englishman. Three knights against eight shows you have skill and God on your side."

I felt much happier the next day, as we left Nancy with the escort of three Swabian knights.  These were experienced warriors.  No wonder the Teutonic knights had had them poisoned.  I would not have liked to face them sword to sword. They immediately took charge of the German men at arms.  As we headed north and east I noticed that the sergeant at arms sported a black eye.  At our noon stop I asked Rolf about that. He shrugged, "I wanted him to know that I was less than happy with the way they had served us.  If they knew nothing of the Teutons plans they should have been suspicious of their behaviour."

"What I do not understand, Rolf, is why they did not kidnap or harm the Empress after they left Nancy."

"Did you not think it strange that they had no squires with them?"

"Now you come to mention I did but as the Empress had not mentioned them…"

"That is because they were the ones who poisoned us and they left to take a message to the Count of Flanders, their master. We had been watching the four of them since we had left Worms.  Gurt was certain that he had seen Lothar with an agent of the King of France."

"The King of France?  I thought you said that it was the Count of Flanders to whom they fled."

He laughed as we mounted our horses, "Politics, my naïve English friend.  The King of France uses the Count of Flanders to undermine your King and his position.  He would dearly love to add Normandy to his lands.  You know whom he keeps in his court do you not?"

"No, who?"

"The son of King Henry's brother, William of Clito. While William's father is a prisoner in your Tower in London, his son is being courted by the King of France.  It is a devious pond into which you have stepped.  The King of France is pulling the strings while others do his deeds.  It is said that he even has the Pope under his spell.  Do not cross the King of France, my friend, it would be fatal."

"And the squires?"

"They may have been with the ambush," he shrugged, "if I see them again then they will die.  Gurt was a good friend and I had served with him these ten years."

As we rode I pointed to his surcoat.  It covered his mail.  I had seen them in the east but, until we had entered the Empire I had not seen them in Europe. "Why do you wear these Rolf?"

"We became used to wearing them in the Holy Land.  There they keep warriors cooler. They are useful for that in parts of the southern Empire. Mainly, though, they identify us in battle.  If a knight has his back to you then you know not if he is friend or foe. "

I nodded, "It makes sense.  You can tell that you three are in the same Conroi."

Carl added, "The also protect our mail from the elements."

I turned to Edward, "We will have some made when time allows."

"Do not forget your shields too, Englishman.  Your plain blue shield tells the world that you do not wish to be identified.  That normally means you have something to hide."

"Like the knight with the red shield." I had told them of the mysterious knight in the hope that they could identify him but they knew him not.

"Exactly."

"We could have a blue background and a star. Guillaume of Ghent's star was effective."

I shook my head, "One star suggests a target! We could have two for the two knights in our conroi."

We spent the next half a day discussing the design with our Swabian friends.  I had noticed that my archers and men at arms looked martial but they also looked a little like brigands for all wore their own clothes.  The archers, in particular, looked like bandits. We had a little coin we had gathered and I still had the purse given to me by Robert of Gloucester.  Thanks to Sir Guy we had not had to use much on the road.  It would be worth the investment to have blue padded tunics made for my men.  We could have a pair of blue stars sewn on to them.  Surcoats would make my men at arms look the same.

We had almost reached Worms when we had our last run with those who wished harm to the Empress. We had begun to relax.  Alan's stitches had begun to itch which Wulfric assured us was a good sign that he was recovering and we had had no attacks for seven days. We headed for an island on the River
Lauter.
  There was a hunting lodge upon it used by the Holy Roman Emperors.  Although it was uninhabited unless the Emperor was there it had a roof, beds and wood for the fires.  The Empress was keen to use it. She knew it well. Rolf thought it safe as it was on an island and the river would protect us from danger. He was proved wrong.

The lodge was just big enough for the knights.  The squires and the men at arms slept outside under quickly erected shelters. Our archers were at home in the huge forests and brought back food for us to cook.  Perhaps we relaxed too much.  We had good food and we had a river to protect our island.  The men at arms stood guard but we, as knights, did not supervise the watches and we left them to it. Whatever the reason, we were surprised by attackers in the middle of the night.

It was a shout which woke me. I opened my eyes and saw nothing for the room was in darkness.  I began to doubt that I had heard anything at all. Perhaps it had been a bad dream. Then I heard the clash of arms.  I grabbed my sword and ran for the door.  As I opened it a huge axe came in my direction.  It was wielded by a bearded giant. I threw myself backwards to avoid having my head split open. I landed on the floor and felt myself winded. Behind the giant I saw a battle was going on outside our doors.  I had to roll to the side as the axe came down again.  I had to take charge and end this. I dived forward and my sword ripped into his kneecap, just below his leather byrnie. As he stepped back on his good leg I jumped to my feet and thrust the sword into his throat. He had no metal there and he collapsed in a heap.

"Edward! Watch the Empress!"

Guy was behind me.  He had his sword in his hand but, like me, he was just in his gambeson. "I hoped they might have given up."

"No such luck.  Ready?"

"Aye ready."

We leapt from the door.  As far as I could see the men who were attacking us had no mail.  That did not help us for neither did we.   However they were not skilled swordsmen and I hoped that we could take advantage of that. It was a large band which had invaded our camp and sheer weight of numbers meant that some had got through our men at arms.  A huddle of seven came hurtling towards the two of us. Three were thrown to the ground by arrows sent into their backs.  I stepped forward and swung my sword in a wide sweep. I held my hand before me and, as my sword ripped into the shoulder of one warrior I managed to grab hold of the shaft of the spear which was heading for my eye.  I continued to bring the sword around and it sliced through the top of the skull of the spearman.  I retained hold of the spear and, flipping it the air, used it defensively in my left hand as some protection from that side.

More men had broken through and, although my archers were felling as many as they could we were in danger of being overwhelmed.  I heard a roar of anger behind as I threw the spear left handed at an advancing man wield an axe.  At the same time I swung my sword at head height to keep the others at bay.  Guy and I were back to back.  Suddenly the three Swabians came hurtling from the door of the hunting lodge.  They had their mighty swords in two hands and they charged so quickly that we were in danger of being knocked over by our allies. As the axe man looked in terror at the three Swabians I darted forward beneath his axe and gutted him.

Guy and I followed the three swordsmen as they drove the terrified assassins down the hill towards the river.  Our task was easy.  We swung our swords and hacked at any who were wounded by the wild charge of the Empress' protectors. By the time we reached the river the hillside was cleared. It took the Swabians some time to return by which time we had made sure that there was no further danger to the Empress. Seven of the German men at arms had paid the price of defending the Empress with their lives. I had lost two more men.  Wilfred the man at arms and Grant the archer were gone.  Both had died in the first assault. We had one prisoner.  He would not last until morning.  Guy's sword had ripped across his stomach and those wounds were always fatal.

"Wulfric, see to our wounded. Brian, make sure the island is secure."

When the Swabians returned we had them question the man.  They were not gentle. They spoke in German and I understood not a word. Finally Rolf nodded, took his sword and took the man's head.

"He asked for a quick death in return for information." He pointed to the dead, "They were hired by a Frenchman. He did not know who paid but I am guessing Louis.  They were sent for on the same day you reached Nancy.  There must be a spy or agent in the town."

When Wulfric and Brian returned they had a puzzled look on their faces. "There are no wounded and the German Sergeant is missing."

Rolf nodded, "I thought there was something suspicious about him. He must have been Lothar and Konrad's man."

I wiped my sword on the tunic of one of the dead.  "The sooner we reach Worms the better.  We cannot afford to lose any more of our men."

There were few coins on the men.  I suspect they would have been given half first and would receive the balance on fulfilment of their contract. This was a harsh world of politics into which we had stumbled.

I went down to the river to wash the blood from me and my sword.  I heard a noise behind me and I whipped my sword around.  It was the Empress Matilda.  Her eyes widened when she saw the sword. I lowered the blade, "I am sorry, my lady.  You should not be out alone. It is not safe."

She walked close to me and put her hands on mine.  She reached up and kissed me gently on the lips, "I am safe when I am with you, Baron Alfraed of Norton. You have saved my life over and over on this journey.  When you raced out to fight these wild animals I thought I had lost you and I would have no protector. Keep yourself safe, my English knight.  I know now that our destinies are intertwined."

Guy suddenly appeared with his sword in his hand, "Thank God! I thought one of them had managed to return and abduct her."

She turned and smiled at him as though no words had passed between us. "I needed to bathe my face and cool it down.  Thank you for your concern, Sir Guy. I am lucky to have such noble knights to protect me."

When we finally saw the towers of Worms, in the distance, I was relieved beyond words. We became more relaxed once we knew we were close to this centre of Imperial power and took off our mail.  Our horses were beginning to suffer. We had travelled hundreds of miles and even a good horse like Scout could not continue to travel each day with a mailed warrior on his back. It also felt good to be riding without helmets and let the fresh air blow through our hair. The journey had been fraught. I had known it would be a hard task but I had had no concept of the twists and turns the road would take. What I did know, as we rode through the huge gates of the town, was that Matilda, Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, was someone for whom I would lay down my life. When I had raced from the hunting lodge on the Lauter, half dressed and barely armed, I had expected to die. That told me much about my feelings for Matilda for I would have done so gladly.